Legal pack
A legal pack is the bundle of documents an auctioneer publishes for each lot before a property auction, so that bidders can commit to a binding contract the moment the hammer falls. Because exchange of contracts happens in the room, there is no later opportunity to raise enquiries. Everything a buyer would normally learn during conveyancing has to be learned from the pack before bidding.
What it contains
The Land Registry title register and plan; the contract and the auctioneer's general conditions of sale; the special conditions of sale for the lot; local authority, water and environmental searches where the seller has commissioned them; any leases, tenancy agreements and rent schedules where the property is let; the energy performance certificate; planning documents; the seller's property information and fixtures forms where supplied; and any addendum published in the days before the sale.
What it hides
The special conditions are where the money is. Sellers routinely pass their own legal fees, search costs, and sometimes a contribution to the auctioneer's costs to the buyer through them, adding several thousand pounds to a lot on top of the buyer's premium; a completion date shorter than the standard 28 days; and obligations to pay arrears of service charge or ground rent. Missing searches mean the buyer pays for them after completion and accepts what they find. A lot with a tenant in situ transfers the tenancy and its liabilities, so the deposit certificate and the documents served at the start of the tenancy belong in the pack; if they are absent, price the risk.
Who reads it
A conveyancer, before you bid, producing a short report on the pack; the report on title is the fuller version produced on a private-treaty purchase. Instruct one who reviews legal packs before the sale rather than after, and expect to pay a fixed fee per pack; see the best conveyancers for buy-to-let landlords. Packs are usually free to download from the auctioneer's site on registration and are updated by addendum up to the day of the sale, so check for changes on the morning.
From working with landlords who buy at auction, the losses we hear about come from packs that were read after the hammer, and specifically from special conditions nobody read at all. After completion, the pack's certificates become the property's compliance record; August's documents feature holds them against the property from day one. The full process from catalogue to keys is in buying property at auction.
Last reviewed: September 2026.
